Matt Zone Ward 15

Councilman Matt Zone was first elected to City Council in 2001, representing Ward 15, which includes the Detroit-Shoreway neighborhood where he and generations of his family grew up.

Ward 15 also includes the Edgewater area and parts of Ohio City, Cudell, and Stockyards neighborhoods.

Councilman Zone is a strong advocate for the arts, green building and alternative energy and he has been a major force behind on-going capital projects that are giving bursts of vibrancy in his West Side ward including the development of the Gordon Square Arts District, which is comprised of new housing and businesses, retail development and the construction and renovation of three theaters.

He is engaged in the $41.5 million Cleveland West Shoreway project that includes reconstructing the road and turning what was a two-mile freeway into a tree-lined boulevard, including new streets and ramps that will give residents more access to Lake Erie.

As chairman of Council’s Safety Committee, Councilman Zone, who is in constant contact with the city’s safety forces, is in the vanguard of the battle against neighborhood crime. He is also very involved in the city of Cleveland's consent decree with the U.S. Department of Justice and the federal monitor overseeing the Cleveland Police Department.

Councilman Zone is also the vice chairman of Council’s Workforce & Community Benefits Committee and is a member of Development, Planning & Sustainability Committee, the Finance Committee and the Operations Committee.

In November 2016, Councilman Zone was elected President of the National League of Cities, an organization that represents 19,000 cities, towns and villages throughout the United States. Previously, Councilman Zone was First Vice President.

Councilman Zone is a graduate of St. Edward High School and Cleveland State University’s College of Urban Affairs. He and his wife, Michelle, have a son who recently graduated from Kent State University.